GANA Member Gallery

Works by GANA Members

Renowned for his world-class original jade gemstone sculptures, Lyle Sopel continues his illustrious career of offering exquisitely executed works to a discerning clientele. With over 30 years of dedication to his practice, Sopel has been hired to work as an advisor on the sculpting of the largest Jade Buddha around the globe in Bangkok, Thailand.

Recognized by National Geographic Magazine Society as “one of the most accomplished contemporary jade sculptors in the world,” Sopel meticulously fashions each of his premier luxury sculptures by hand. Ranging in size from pedestal to life-sized, these refined works are often embellished with jade, quartz-crystal, rubies, lapis lazuli and diamonds. Through his work, Sopel has come to be recognized as a concierge artist who specializes in the creation of rarefied sculptures for his cadre of elite collectors.

As the recipient of lecture invitations for gem museums and private gallery events in the United States, Geneva, Switzerland, Idar-Oberstein in Germany, and the Hermitage in St. Petersburg, Russia, Sopel is considered an iconic presence across North America, China and Europe. His work is housed in the collections of celebrities, heads of state, dignitaries and members of royalty around the globe. Notable collectors include the former President of the USA, George Bush Sr, the Duke & Duchess of Westminster, His Highness the Aga Khan III, and most recently, celebrity art collector John Assaraf.

Sopel’s nature inspired works are a reflection of his profound affinity with texture, colour and form, embodying what he refers to as “the spirit that exists in both the human and animal kingdoms”. Characterized by contemporary art critic and author, Dr. Zella Jackson, as an “extraordinary artist with whom only a handful exist in the world today”, Sopel stands out as a devoted artist who has mastered materials that are harder than steel. This mastery, along with a keen observation of the natural world, emanates from Sopel’s line of highly-prized sculptures, bringing a harmonious aesthetic and refined appreciation into the lives of his ardent collectors.

Luis Alberto Quispe Aparicio follows a second generation family tradition, since 1968, in the creation of objects d´art and gemstone carving (also known as glyptography) an ancient art with roots from pre–Babylonian times.

An engineer by profession, he grew up surrounded by art, sculpture, minerals & gemstones; artists, master carvers and jewellers were ingrained in his everyday life at his family studio in Lima, Peru where he spent most of his formative years.

His knowledge on precious stones was organically acquired during constant visits to mines around the world where he hunted for exceptional gemstones; making the quest for rarity and quality an exquisite lifetime pursuit.

His art is characterized by the fusion of sculpting techniques and those of jewellery fabrication, the use of exceptional gemstones, the daring design and the flawless execution carried out by hand which is vital in order to give a soul to each creation.

After mastering his craft, Quispe Aparacio moved to Paris in search for a new vision and to broaden his scope through the specialization in luxury goods. Examples of this can be seen in his collection “The Beast Within” which was inspired by the resounding influence nature has on man after Quispe Aparacio’s numerous travels to Africa. Today, though he travels the world in search for the rarest gemstones to incorporate into his work, his studio specializes in carving ruby. The second hardest gemstone found on earth after the diamond, few artists have managed to successfully work with ruby as it requires advanced technique in vision, carving and polishing.

His works are displayed in museums in the United States and Europe and enjoyed by private collectors around the World.

Originally from Transylvania, Rumania, Georg became a prominent sculptor in Canada and the Pacific Northwest, eventually re-locating to Northern California in 2001.

With extensive experience in all sculptural media, his work evolved into a style of juxtaposing contrasting surface finishes, textures, colors, and materials. As an extension, this approach to sculptural art also became his signature when he immersed himself in the world of jade.

As a second generation Chinese American, I became interested in how cultures define and shape the lives of those who people them.

Sculpture is my primary medium of expression. To create art is to feel in the presence of personal creativity through inspiration. I feel it is a great honor for me to pay tribute through my art. I began my carving through drawing, clay, sculpting and music, am a unique self-taught sculptor, designer and realistic artist, specializing in German Renaissance stylized cameos, intaglios. Most of my art work represents the fulfillment of Peace & Love in our lives. Humanity and Buddhism are my subjects.

One of my earliest memories is being in nursery school, molding a lump of clay. It wasn’t that I thought I was making something beautiful;
it was in the process that I found wonder. The pleasure of working with my hands has been a dominant theme in my life, as has my fascination in ornamentation that involved natural objects.

As a child, I made jewelry from seashells, already interested in flowing lines and the interplay of light and shadow. I seek to create timeless designs inspired by the stones themselves, teasing out the rhythmic patterns in nature. The response I want to my jewelry is for the someone to reach for the piece, wanting to explore its lines and caress it. What I found to be pleasurable to create, I want the owner to find pleasurable to hold and wear.

Carving gems is an act of transformational magic. It is so magical, that after decades in the studio, it still amazes Sherris Cottier Shank that simple carving and polishing can release such astonishing beauty.

Sherris credits her success and acceptance in both the jewelry and art communities, to a combination of aesthetic and practical abilities. Her style is organic, curvilinear, and flowing which many people find evocative of nature and aesthetically exciting. Her keen eye for quality gems, developed with years of goldsmithing experience, aids her in selecting the finest gemstone rough. She appreciates and respects the role of the jeweler in creating settings for her gem art, by specifically designing gems that are easy to set.

Sherris has won 8 Cutting Edge Awards from the American Gem Trade Association, and one international award from The Competition For Gemstone Engraving in Idar Oberstein, Germany. She has written several magazine articles about gem art, and been quoted countless times by others. One of her sculptures sold at Christies in England, and her work has been displayed in several important museum shows.

Helen Serras-Herman is an acclaimed artist with over 29 years of experience in unique gem sculpture and jewelry art. Her award-winning, contemporary organic compositions with carved gems have been collected and exhibited world-wide, and published in over 100 trade magazines, newspaper articles and books.

Born in New York City, lived in Athens, Greece, Helen studied sculpture in Berlin, Germany for 6 years (MFA), later gemology (FGA) and glyptic arts. She joined GANA in 1997 and served as President in 2002-2003 and VP in 2008-2009.

In 2003 Helen was inducted in the National Lapidary Hall of Fame. After 18 years in Maryland, in 2005 Helen and her husband moved to Rio Rico, in Southern Arizona.

Please visit her website at www.gemartcenter.com.

Artist Statement

Inspired by people and mythology my gem sculptures and jewelry take the symbolic shape of gods, nymphs or fantastical creatures. I try to portray them with grace and elegance, with exaggeration, pushing the visual limits. Influenced by travels, landscapes, gem materials, history of the ancient worlds, the great masters and the world around me, my artwork always tells a story.

With almost 30 years of gem cutting experience, Larry Woods is internationally recognized as a master gem cutter and artist having won many prestigious awards for his original gem cutting, carvings and gem designs.

“My passion and love for colored gems and gem cutting is in revealing the most beautiful, most brilliant gem from each rare piece of gem rough. I am very grateful for the opportunity of expressing creativity and craft in the fashioning and evolution of these rare and precious expressions of nature.”

As a jewelry artist, Stacia incorporates modern with classical design. She uses organic, flowing lines in her pieces, to showcase fine gems. Balance is important, even in her asymmetrical pieces. Stacia believes the jewelry should enhance the beauty of the gem. Her designs are often minimalistic focusing the attention on the stone. She uses pearls in combination with colored gems to create beautiful art jewelry.

Stacia was the winner of the 3rd International Bibelot Competition sponsored by the Headly-Whitney Museum in Lexington, Kentucky. Her bibelot is displayed in the museum’s permanent collection.

Rick has a Bachelors Degree in Fine Art from Wichita State University. He is a master lapidary and an accomplished goldsmith. He became interested in rocks and minerals at a very early age and started cutting cabochon gems in 1972, and has faceted fine colored gems since 1983. With awards in international and domestic gem art competitions and exhibitions, Ricks’ work has been published in Colored Stone, Lapidary Journal, Professional Jeweler, Tucson Show Guide and other magazines, newspapers and publications.

A member of the United States Faceters Guild he is also a member and former Board Member of the GANA organization. He is a founding member of the Kansas Meteorite Society. He recently found a chatoyant peridot in a rare pallasite meteorite and cut the first known extraterrestrial cat’s-eye peridot cabochon, arguably among the very rarest gems in the world.

I began sculpting quartz internally in 1985 after many years of external gemstone carving and now incorporate holographic sculptures with internal images hand-carved by myself.

I have developed my knowledge of internal sculpture and different optical effects of quartz through extensive experimentation with this medium. Each crystal is hand carved using diamond burrs with a flex shaft and lots of water and patience.

“I like to play with the critical condition of balance to create images with a sense of line contrasting colors and patterns, forming metaphors through my imagination”.

About Slava

“Slava Tulupov sets a benchmark for others in the field. With the sense of composition and balance, the precision and fineness of his work, he has introduced a fine art sensibility to gem carving.”

The New York Times

“His approach to carving is like his approach to life: orderly, precise, and critical almost to the point of obsession.”

Lapidary Journal

Collectors and museums from around the world own his artwork, and he has won many awards including top AGTA “Cutting Edge” national awards in USA and “The Jewelry Olimpus” international awards in Europe for excellence in gemstone carving and new concepts in design, becoming one of the most respected and recognized gem artists in the world.

Perry Brent Davis brings together the dazzling world of gemstones with his refined sense of form and his uniquely expressive ability to expand the use of the medium. In this scrupulous undertaking, he is the only sculptor in the USA working with certain gemstone materials. He creates a truly unique art form with the powerful impact by bringing out the vivid color and intricate patterns in the gem materials.

Perry has developed a new expression in the sculpture of gemstones. He has chosen this challenging medium for both its dazzling natural hues and intrinsic value. The process begins by hand selecting each specimen of gemstone for its vibrant color, mineral content, and dramatic variation in patterns. His creative styles range from abstract to deco, nouveau, and surrealistic forms. Each creation is a signed original, not reproducible and therefore unavailable in replication or limited edition series.

By their very nature, these minerals are technically complex and require the use of a vast array of diamond tools and other equipment. Unlike working with alabaster or marble, gem materials rarely occur in extremely large, virtually flawless pieces with consistent hardness and grain throughout the stone. The gemstone materials selected typically have two, three or more minerals of varying degrees of hardness, requiring both a high level of technical ability and articulate workmanship.

This fresh new art form accentuates the relationship of sculpting to painting. The painter takes the pigments, which originally came from stones and have been crushed, pulverized, mixed up with chemicals and then applies them to a two-dimensional surface. Perry’s gemstone sculptures bring forth the vivid pigments in their natural state to create a three-dimensional painting encapsulated within the sculptural form. The distinction is that this material isn’t formed by adding, but by taking away—to reveal the contours within the multidimensional landscape.